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whitney

I uncharacteristically decided to click on an ad—a Tiffany & Co. paid post on the New York Times website—because it mentioned Miranda July AND the Whitney Biennial. Color me impressed!

Miranda July as Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, founder of the Whitney Biennial

It’s a video series featuring artists included in past Whitney Biennials (Catherine Opie, Miranda J, Kehinde Wiley &more) and other art folk (Jerry Saltz, Tavi Gevinson). They talk about where art comes from, it’s meaning, systems of art making, the Biennial, the role of digital art, etc. So far only the first 3 videos seem to be available and I’m looking forward to watching the 2 others.

The film series is inspired by John Berger’sWays of Seeing, which was probably the most insightful book I read in college and has really stuck with me. I’ve just watched the 4-part BBC television series—it feels good to flex that Art History muscle a bit!

In the 44 years since the program aired, the discussion of what constitutes art has only become louder and more provocative. It’s a debate with many views.

According to the site, Tiffany’s founder, Charles Lewis Tiffany, served as an original trustee of the Metropolitan Museum and the company is still a patron of the arts and will be sponsoring the next 3 Biennials. I think these films are a pretty nice way to promote this partnership, though I found the actual micro site itself lacking and too scroll-y.

I must get to the Whitney and see the Biennial soon. I also would I’d like to see The Seasons in Quincy, a movie about Berger later in life. And a few weeks ago while walking passed Tiffany’s I told my sister that I had never been inside and she couldn’t believe it. So maybe now I’ll actually to go in (won’t be purchasing anything though)! Lots of activities to add to my to-do list…